Published: 3 August 2021
Last updated: 4 March 2024
ASHLEY BROWNE: Jess Fox leads the way after her canoe slalom victory, with 400m runner Steve Solomon ready to stride up the list
1. Jess Fox (canoe slalom)
It was fourth time lucky for Fox at Tokyo. After winning the silver medal in the K1 category at London in 2012 and bronze at Rio in 2016, she won the bronze medal once again in Tokyo earlier this week. She was on track to becoming one of Australia’s unluckiest Olympians.
But this time there a second opportunity for gold with the C1 category introduced for the first time. Fox was among those in the canoe slalom community pushing hard for its inclusion. Perhaps she knew something because she blitzed the field in the final at the Kasai course and her 105.04 time was three seconds faster than Great Britain’s Mallory Franklin.
An Olympic gold medal the number one sporting achievement in the world in our eyes and that vaults the 27-year-old from Penrith to the top of this list.
2. Julien Wiener (cricket)
It’s a toss-up between Wiener and Michael Klinger, but Wiener, who played six Tests and seven one-day internationals for Australia, gets the nod here. At the time Weiner played, the Test and one-day teams were the same, so earning national selection was even tougher.
He was a fine opening bat, who averaged 25.54 and was a bit stiff to be dropped after making an unbeaten 93 for Australia in his Test match against Pakistan in Karachi in 1980. The Victorian averaged 30.32 in first-class cricket and 45.72 in one-day matches.
3. Michael Klinger (cricket)
The wunderkind from Mount Scopus College enjoyed a 20-year career as a first-class cricketer for Victoria, South Australia and Western Australia, Big Bash cricket for the Perth Strikers and played County Cricket for Worcestershire and Gloucestershire.
He was a run machine wherever he played and in particular, he shone as a T-20 batsman. He was generally regarded as poorly treated by the national selectors, but finally got his chance in 2017 when he played three T-20 games for Australia in a home series for Australia against Sri Lanka.
There are plenty who believe that Klinger, by virtue of longevity and weight of runs (11,320 in first-class cricket, 7449 in limited overs and 5960) should be ranked above Wiener.
4. Tal Karp (football)
The midfielder from Perth played 22 games for the Matildas between 2002 and 2004 including the 2002 US Cup and the 2003 FIFA Women’s World Cup. She also played in the old national women’s league for Canberra, Adelaide and Perth before retiring to focus on her law career. But she came out of retirement in 2008 to captain Melbourne Victory in the inaugural W League season.
5. Suzy Javor (table tennis)
After fleeing her native Hungary in 1957 she arrived in Australia and woold become this country’s greatest female table tennis player, winning the Australian singles title 10 times between 1958 and 1970. All up, she won 95 singles titles in Australia. She is the only table tennis player – and the only Jewish athlete - in the Sports Australia Hall of Fame.
6. Myer Rosenblum (rugby union, track and field)
Played four tests as a breakaway for New South Wales in 1928 against the All-Blacks. The New South Wales Rugby Union was the peak body at the time and in 1986 these games were retrospectively granted full test status by the Australian Rugby Union. He also represented Australia in the hammer throw at the 1938 Empire (now Commonwealth) Games.
7. Rupert Rosenblum (rugby union)
Son of Myer, he played three tests for the Wallabies in 1969 and 1970 as a fly-half with elite kicking skills. He later held the record for the most number of games played for the University Rugby Club in the Sydney competition.
8. Todd Goldstein (AFL football)
269 games and counting as North Melbourne’s No.1 ruckman. He won the club’s best and fairest in 2015 the same year he won his first and only All-Australian blazer.
9. Jemima Montag (race walking)
Brought Australia to a standstill on a sunny April morning in 2018 when as a virtual unknown, she won the 20km walk at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. She backed that up with a silver medal at the World University Games the following year and a 10th place finish at the World Championships. She’ll race at Tokyo next week and a good result will likely bump her further up this list.
10. Steven Solomon (track and field)
Made the final of the men’s 400 metres at the 2012 London Olympics, the first Australian in 24 years to do so. It was just three years after his first race over that distance while still at school. Before that he was a soccer player. After narrowly missing out on selection for Rio in 2016, he is back on the team in Tokyo and will again race over 400 metres. He is also the captain of the men’s track and field team in Tokyo.
Honourable mentions
Robby Foldvari (billiards), Brad Rosen (basketball), Ruth Buckstein (cricket), Matt Levy (swimming), David Zalcberg (table tennis) Mike Shulman (rugby league).
Photo: Jessica Fox with her Canoe Slalom gold medal
